


I (K)need You

by connorssock



Series: Prompt Fills [17]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Get Together, M/M, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Sick Gavin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-16 16:07:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19321555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/connorssock/pseuds/connorssock
Summary: For the prompt: What if the reason Gavin is perpetually pissed is that he lives with chronic pain that the cold makes worse. This could be due to existing medical condition or injury or both.





	I (K)need You

Looking back on it, Gavin should have known he was going to have a flareup. He cursed himself repeatedly but it was too late to do much other than phone in and say he needed time off. Again. Even with special consideration and adjustments to work, he still hated the fact that he needed time off. Of course fate would curse him with rheumatoid arthritis at such an early age.

Usually, he could get by, meds kept the worst of the pain at bay and since becoming a detective, he didn’t have to chase down perps personally. It suited him and his knees just fine. Still, with everything going on with sodding androids (who unfairly never got sick and could replace parts that were damaged), the precinct being over-stretched and Hank not pulling his weight, Gavin should have seen the symptoms of another flareup coming.

He hobbled out to his kitchen for the medication and threw a heat pack in the microwave for good measure. Over the years he’d learnt the literature for coping off by heart. Meds, heat (because the cold only seemed to make things worse for him), careful and gentle exercise, and his favourite, relax. Like he could relax at all. The precinct was going down the shitter along with the rest of the world. Androids were gaining sentience and starting to be recognised as equals. It was only a matter of time before one of them swanned in and replaced him. Fowler was already talking about some military grade asshole partnering with him.

The microwave beeped and Gavin hissed as he pulled the heat pack out. By the time he made it back to the sofa and managed to get his legs up, it had cooled enough that he didn’t have to bother worrying about a towel to wrap the thing in.

It took a little under a week before Gavin felt up to getting out of the house. His knee still screeched in protest, the right one was especially bad this time round. But the longer Gavin stayed at home, the worse his mood got and he knew that if he didn’t get himself back on track quickly, he’d need to drop by the psychiatrist again.

With gritted teeth, Gavin went to work, relieved that self-driving cars were a thing so he didn’t have to worry about pedals. At the precinct, he tried to appear as normal as possible, hid his limp behind a slower stride and gritted his teeth. Pain killers were stashed in his bag along with his lunch. Not that they filled him with joy. While they took the edge of the pain away, they did screw with his stomach enough that he tried to stop taking them as quickly as possible. It was a hopeless battle with no victory in sight.

Slumping at his desk, Gavin didn’t realise that Chris had approached with a case file in hand.

“What?” Gavin snapped and rubbed his temple. He really hoped there wasn’t a homicide scene he was needed at.

“Just wanted to run something by you.” Chris looked taken aback and Gavin’s more sour than usual mood.

It was a case that wasn’t really in Gavin’s jurisdiction, he didn’t have time for it either. A week off and a lot of crap had accumulated in his inbox. He was half tempted to tell Chris where to shove it but Fowler saved him the hard work.

“Reed, my office,” he said and shot Chris a look.

Slowly, Gavin made his way into the office, took the stairs one at a time, not caring who saw him. Inside, Fowler was standing next to an android.

“Your new partner, Reed. Show him the ropes.”

“Fuckin’ A,” Gavin rolled his eyes. But when the android stuck his hand out and introduced himself as Nines, Gavin shook it and huffed out a “Reed”.

There wasn’t much Gavin could do, Nines gracefully took the empty desk opposite him, interfaced with the computer and was immediately up to speed on everything. At least he didn’t make a show of it, merely smiled at Gavin and told him he’d get to work on some of the outstanding reports where it was just a case of summarising evidence from the archives room.

Gavin grunted in response but didn’t say anything. He had his own work to get on with. If Nines could entertain himself and maybe even get a load of the more boring reports done then Gavin might even call himself a bit happy.

“Let me get a coffee for you,” Nines had still Gavin’s attempts at getting up. Not waiting for a reply, Nines disappeared into the breakroom. A minute later, he appeared with a steaming cup of coffee and also a glass of cold water. Leaving them on the desk, he returned to his seat.

Gavin wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth and he relished the fact he could take his painkillers with water. Somehow it never felt right with hot coffee but he was usually too much on an idiot to remember until it was too late.

“Thanks,” he threw over the desk and got a small smile from Nines in return.

They worked well together, Nines silently working around any limitation Gavin had. He even took in stride the foul moods when Gavin ached particularly badly on a cold day. With winter setting in. Gavin’s knees were slower to bend in the mornings, prone to locking up if he was sat still for too long. Not once did Nines complain that a human was holding him up.

“Why haven’t you asked for a better partner yet?” Gavin asked him one lunchtime.

“There is nobody better than you.” The disbelieving snort Gavin gave drew a sharp look. “Just because your knees give you trouble does not mean you don’t have the sharpest mind here. Even in your less than pleasant moments, I find you very stimulating.”

There was nothing Gavin could say to that other than scoff and bump his shoulder against Nines’. They stood in the breakroom, enjoying each other’s silence.

Of course things couldn’t ever go smoothly. A spate of late night crime scenes, stress of a potential serial killer or copy cat killings, coupled with bad sleep and the cold of winter were a recipe for disaster. Gavin woke up one morning and let out a harsh cry as his knees refused to cooperate. Fumbling for his phone, he called in sick.

He didn’t expect a knock on his door mid-morning when he was crawling out of bed, knees finally giving enough that he could drag himself across the floor. There was a little relief in knowing he could sit next to the drawer with painkillers and rummage around in them while sitting on the floor without having to stand.

“Who is it?” he yelled from next to the bed. The reply was muffled but his phone started ringing.

“Hello?” he picked up.

“Gavin, it’s Nines. The captain told me you had another flareup. May I come in?”

“Key to the door is under the potted plant to your left.” That was all Gavin said before he hung up the phone.

Dignity had long since flown out the window when he had a flare. He waited and listened as Nines let himself into his home and made short work of finding him. There were many things Gavin expected. Mockery for being so helpless and weak. Sympathy for being a fragile human. Even annoyance at having had yet another flareup. Instead, he got Nines sitting down on the floor next to him with a gentle “What can I do to help?”

For the first time in his life, Gavin found he didn’t have to worry about getting things sorted for himself. Nines brought him his tablets, heated up a gel pack and changed the sheets on the bed he had sweated through.

“My research indicates that some people would find a warm bath helpful,” he suggested tentatively.

Truth be told, it sounded amazing but Gavin had never been able to safely get himself in (and then out) of the tub during a flare so he hadn’t been able to do it. That didn’t seem to bother Nines as he ran the bath and gently carried Gavin towards it. Stripping down to his underwear, Gavin let himself be lowered into the warm water and sighed. It really did feel good, so much better than any heat pack. Fingers rubbed his shoulders, dug into tense muscle until he relaxed into the water, half asleep.

“Thank you,” he murmured and turned to lean a cheek against Nines’ hand.

“You’re welcome,” Nines replied. There was a beat before he leaned closer and pecked Gavin on the cheek. “I hope this is okay.”

“More than,” the reply was soft and Gavin opened his eyes to look at Nines properly. “And if you lean a little closer, I could even show you how okay it is.”

Their smiles were matching as Nines moved from behind Gavin and knelt at the side of the tub. One wet hand wound its way around the back of his neck as Gavin pulled him in for a kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> Also posted on tumblr under @connorssock


End file.
